School Safety Today in NJ: A Far Cry From 25 Years Ago

You can never be too safe in todays world. At least, that's how the old saying goes. And with New Jersey's schools, that saying couldn't ring any louder.

Every so often, parents need to go to their kids schools for various reasons. Sometimes it's for fun activities, where other times it involves things such as their child's progress.

The procedure of when you arrive is pretty much the same across all New Jersey schools. You enter through a specific location where security would meet you.

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Who are you

After identifying yourself and addressing why you're there, security would then take down your info and issue you a visitors pass before unlocking the main door into school so you can get in.

On the surface this doesn't seem like a big deal. Those measures, which may differ a bit from school to school, are in place to keep our children safe.

But after several years of going through this process with my kids' school, it suddenly hit me. What was the procedure like when I went to school around 25 years ago?

Come right in

One part that I believe was still the same is that you still needed to sign in and register at the front office. Outside of that, however, is where it differs.

Let's start with the obvious one - locked doors. When I was a kid, our schools did not have locked doors the way they do now.

There was no security to check in with, and you were free and clear to enter the building on your own. Yes, you could technically wander the halls without ever going through security.

Thanks for the call

We also didn't have cell phones or computers back then. If there were computers, they were still in their very early stages before becoming more mainstream by the turn of the century.

Another difference. We weren't paranoid like we are today. We just left the doors opened and didn't think twice about it.

It was simpler times for sure, but also points to the changes in time. Fast forward to today, and it's completely unheard of to have a school unlocked without some type of security established. What a difference 25 years makes.

The above post reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 Sunday morning host & content contributor Mike Brant. Any opinions expressed are his own.